Ex-VA Manger Indicted on 50 Counts of Falsifying Veterans Records

VA manager indicted on 50 counts of falsifying records of veterans waiting for medical care
Washington Post
Lisa Rein
July 20, 2015

Henderson appeared in U.S. District Court on Friday and was released on bond. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

A manager at a Veterans Affairs medical center in Georgia is on leave with pay following his indictment on 50 counts of ordering his staff to falsify medical records of veterans waiting for outside medical care.

The case against Cathedral Henderson appears to be the first round of criminal charges stemming from a wait-times scandal that came to light last year and led to the resignation of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki.

Henderson, 50, was in charge of revenue and billing and chief of “purchase care” in Augusta, coordinating medical care for veterans that VA could not offer.

He was responsible for ensuring that more than 2,700 veterans awaiting approval for care outside the system were properly referred to for doctor’s appointments. But under pressure from VA headquarters in 2014 to close out all requests for outside care, Cathedral simply ordered his staff to falsify the waiting patients’ medical records to show that the veterans had either completed or refused services, prosecutors allege.
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